July 29 – Ólavsøka / National Day in the Faroe Islands

Posted
on July 29, 2016

I
wrote about Ólavsøka
Eve in the Faroe Islands in an earlier post,
but since Ólavsøka
is considered by many Faroese people to be their national day, I
figured I had to go on record about today's events.

The
biggest part of Ólavsøka, for the Faroese, is the reopening of
Parliament after their summer break. Before that happens, there is a
procession and a Cantata—classical music and choir music sung by
160 choir singers from all over the Faroe Islands.

Where
are the Faroe Islands?

These
North Atlantic islands lie about halfway between Norway and Iceland.
They are an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark. That
means that the Faroese govern themselves but depend on Denmark for
military defense, police force, justice system, and currency.

What
makes the Faroe Islands special?

Like
most places, there are some natural-beauty sites on the islands.

Kunoy

Mulafossur Waterfall

Parts
of the islands feature straight-sided cliffs that plunge down into
the North Atlantic:

And
other parts are weird and pointy and rugged:

There
are some teeny-tiny villages, like Saksun:

But
even the largest town in the Faroes, like its capital, Torshavn, is
not a proper city:

(Torshavn has only about 13,000 people – only about three times as large as my high school!)

Bird
watchers enjoy the diverse birds who live on or visit the islands.
Check out these puffins:

Best
of all, perhaps, the Faroe Islands are far enough north that you can
sometimes see the Northern Lights there:

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This site is designed to be a source of interesting articles for kids and a resource for teachers and parents (especially homeschool teacher/parents!). From world holidays to historical anniversaries, Every Day Is Special celebrates each and every day.